Hands Across California: A Few of Our Supporters...

Coastline students around Orange County rejoice: spring break is almost upon us! Time to break out the bathing suits, 'stunnah' shades (that's right...I typed 'stunnah') and suntan lotion. Or, if you're like me, time to catch up on sleep, recorded television shows and enjoy some quality time with a boyfriend who has been somewhat neglected these past few weeks as school packs on the heat. Whichever type of Spring Breaker you are, I hope you all have a wonderful week of freedom from school and come back in one piece with enough recollection of the partying you did to know you had a great time with your friends.

I'll be reminding you again upon our return (just in case, for some reason, you suffer alcohol-induced short-term memory loss during Spring Break), but I wanted to remind you that Hands Across California is fast approaching. April 17 is when we will all meet to join hands in a symbolic, unified protest against the tuition hikes we're sure to face due to the budget crisis up in Sacramento.

I'm not sure if you know this, but we're being supported by some well-known and influential people. Actor and comedian George Lopez will be in line with us somewhere in California. Time Magazine named him one of the 25 Most Influential Hispanics in America and he is coming out to support our cause on what will hopefully be a warm, sunny Sunday in April.

You don't have to be a music buff to recognize the name Quincy Jones and know what a major impact he has had in the music industry throughout his musical career. Among the multiple achievements, awards and honors that have been bestowed upon Jones are 27 Grammy awards and the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award. A participant of "Hands Across America", Jones sent in a letter of endorsement to Hands Across California, extending his support. In his letter, Jones wrote:

"I was extremely proud to be part of [Hands Across America], which showed

clearly what we can do when we stand together as one. I am just as proud
this year to join an equally important effort to shine a light on another serious
need with an event called 'Hands Across California'."

On the political end of the spectrum, HAC has garnered support from Karen Bass. For those of you who are not politically-inclined, Bass was the first African American woman elected Speaker of the California Assembly. While pursuing her college education, Bass attended several California community colleges and eventually earned her degree from Cal-State Dominguez Hills. She is currently a United States Congresswoman representing California's 33rd Congressional District. And she started out where we are right now: at a California community college!

Another person from the political arena who has endorsed HAC initially attended East Los Angeles College before transferring to UCLA and obtaining his Law Degree. He is a former State Assembly Member and Speaker. And his is a name we're all very familiar with. He is the Mayor of the City of Los Angeles, Antonio Villaraigosa.

For a full list of celebrity supporters and political endorsements for Hands Across California, click on the "Who's On Board" tab at the Hands Across California homepage.

Also, check out HAC's Facebook page for pictures, updates, and more info about the organization. They posted something today that I thought was pretty cool. AT&T has set up a number for supporters to text and donate $10 to the cause. That number is 27722. California Community College students thank you, AT&T, along with anyone who donates their time, money, or support to our cause!

Sources:
Hands Across California (http://www.handsacrossca.org/)
HAC's Facebook Page (http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/pages/Hands-Across-California/162349360471292)

UFC 128: Shogun vs Jones; Sunday Day Date w/ Mom

Ahhhh. Friday has arrived. And I'm still around to enjoy it. What a nice feeling.

I've been getting these really bad headaches in the afternoons the past few days. They're pretty brutal. Not full-blown migraines, but they're pretty close. It's rather frustrating, if you ask me. I'm sure staring at a computer screen even after my eight hours are complete at work is just making it that much better. But I wanted to post something before the weekend begins.

UFC 128: Shogun vs Jones
It's that time again, folks. Another UFC fight is upon us. And you know what that means...You'll get a recap blog about it on Sunday. A lot of guys are fighting that I really like. The biggest and most anticipated fight is, of course, the title fight between Mauricio Shogun Rua (the 'r' in his last name is pronounced like an 'h': hoo-ah) and Jonny Jones. Now, the crazy part about this fight is that Jones is the favorite in this fight despite the fact that he's the challenger, not the champ. Don't get me wrong, he's a crazy talented fighter and his arms...The man has an 84-inch reach. You read correctly. 84 inches. On top of it, his legs go up to his face. It comes as no surprise that his nickname is Jonny 'Bones' Jones. I really like him; he's very humble, very respectful; seems like a really likeable and friendly person. And he can put the hurtin on like no other. He's just still very new in the world of UFC and I'm afraid that he's taking this fight too lightly. Shogun has the belt for a reason; he TKO'd Lyoto Machida, the hardest man to actually hit in the octogan. So. I'll be cheering for Jones, but I'm a little nervous about the fight.

And then...Urijah Faber is making his UFC debut. Urijah is the 'California Kid' from the former WEC and was a title holder in the organization. I'm so excited to see him back. He's such a nice guy outside the Octagon (I love that at the beginning of every fight or after it's over, he always looks into the camera and says, "Hi mom." I think that's so sweet). But in a fight, he is an absolute animal. He's fighting Eddie Wineland, who seems like a pretty serious fighter, but I'm pretty sure that Urijah will be able to handle him. Nice to get the California Kid back on the scene!!

Brendan Schaub is also fighting, which I'm very excited about, although he's fighting a pretty serious opponent (Mirko Cro Cop). I'll be cheering Schaub on, but... We'll see what happens.

Girls Day with Mom
On Sunday, I'll be enjoying a lovely little Girls Day with my Mom. We're going to meet at Mainplace Mall in Orange after I attend the Cub Scouts Pushcart Derby for the newspaper (so cute!!). After a little shopping and unwise spending, we're going to be attending The Battle of the Dance in Anaheim. I'm writing a review of it for the newspaper and snagged two tickets so she's going to come with me. It's a show and dinner...all fancy. ;) What I'm most excited about is that there are going to be Irish Stepdancers performing. I have been obsessed with 'Riverdancing' ever since I saw a video of it when I lived in Switzerland when I was 12 years old and have always wanted to see it live. So that will be really exciting. :)

So that's my weekend. :) Tomorrow during the day, Jordan and I are going to the Sprint store to possibly get my new phone, but other than that tomorrow will be a day of laundry, homework, and rest at home until it's time to head up to Buffalo Wild Wings to watch the fights. :)

Talk to you all soon!!

Hands Across California: If It Weren't For Community Colleges...

As strange as it sounds to us students, I know there are some people that have a slightly skewed opinion of community colleges. They may think that community college is for people who weren't good enough for a university or who 'couldn't hack it'. Well, we all know that isn't true. There are incredibly brilliant and talented people that get their start at community colleges. At these two-year institutions, they may have gotten the financial help they needed to attend college and complete their general education requirements before transferring and pursuing their dreams and passions. The problem is, though, we never hear what community college people went to. We'll hear people say that they're Stanford or UCLA graduates, but how many times have you ever heard someone say, "Well I graduated NYU by way of Coastline Community College"?

I don't think I've ever heard that. And that's a darn shame. Fortunately, however, I've located a list (and it's a list. Not grocery list length; this is pages long). This is a list of prominent and successful people in a variety of professions, from athletes to actors to scientists. It lists what they do now and which community college they attended. And not just any community colleges. California community colleges.

So. Click HERE to see the list of people who wouldn't be where they are without California Community Colleges...

Hands Across California

Granted, the majority of people who read this do not live in California. But I'm going to write about it anyway. (PS. I totally didn't intend for this to turn into a research paper, but...when I get going, it's hard for me to rein it in sometimes. So please, bear with me).

In case anyone's been living under a rock for the past couple years, California has been dealing with a bit of a budget crisis. It seems that Sacramento's having difficulty balancing their checkbook and schools, from elementary to college-level, have been feeling the effects.In the California state Constitution, education is listed as its number one priority, yet ironically, schools are the programs losing the most funding while the state tries to dig itself out of the hole it's in. Just yesterday, students, staff and administrators marched to protest budget and program cuts and tuition increases in their March in March. Last year, over 8,000 members of the college communit (community colleges, UC's, and Cal State's) joined the march. As soon as the numbers come in for this year's march, I will post them.

I've been saying that I want to do something to try to help, but I wasn't sure what. Well, now I do. I am the student coordinator for Coastline Community College's participation in HAC. What is Hands Across California (HAC)? It is a fundraiser dedication to raising money for the California Community Colleges Scholarship Endowment, which will provide thousands of California residents with scholarships and financial assistance to pursue higher education as it becomes increasingly more expensive--read: impossible--to do so. These budget cuts, quite literally, are killing the future of our state. The Hands Across California fundraiser will continue from now through April 17th, ending in an unprecedented student demonstration. The goal is for students, staff, administrators, friends and supporters to join hands in continuous loops stretching across the entire state. To give you an idea of just how many students that would involve: one mile is approximately 1,000 students.

According to the website for the March in March (http://www.iwillmarch.com/), California community colleges are attended by 2.9 million California residents. The Foundation for California Community Colleges state that this figure represents one-quarter of the nation's community college attendance. Originally created for students wishing to continue their education who do not have the funding to attend a four-year university for all four years, community colleges teach students who have an annual median income between $5,544 and $16,223. Those students who do move on to a four-year institution after graduating from a California community college tend to earn a higher grade-point avarage than students who have attended all four yaers at a university.

Have any of you had to call 911 because your house is on fire? Or had a sick relative in a hospital needing serious medical attention? Or perhaps you need help from the police for whatever reason. If you live in California, odds are the person coming to your aid is a California community college graduate. Our community college system trains approximately eighty percent of all firefighters, law enforcement officers, and medical emergency technicians. Likewise, seventy percent of California nurses receive their training from community colleges. What will happen, if these programs become increasingly expensive or are even cut entirely? Who will come to our aid if there is no affordable institution to train these individuals?

The issue doesn't stop at community colleges. UC's and Cal State's are facing the same setbacks. Answer me this though: If community colleges were created to allow students who could not afford a four-year school right away to pursue their education and these institutions are becoming too expensive for us, how are we going to be able to move on to a four-year?

I'm aware that college students aren't the only ones facing financial difficulties due to economic crises. I'm also aware people may not have the money to donate to a cause besides the one of caring for their own family. This may pale in comparison to the recent and ongoing disaster in Japan, but make no mistake that this is a crisis. If you wish to sign up and save your place in line for April 17th or if you wish to make a donation, please visit http://www.handsacrosscalifornia.org/. You don't have to be a student to participate, so if you're free on April 17th and would like help this cause, sign up and come on down! The "routes" for each region of California is listed on the website here.



Sources:
Foundation for California Community Colleges (http://www.foundationccc.org/)
I Will March (http://www.iwillmarch.com/)
Hands Across California (http://www.handsacrosscalifornia.org/)

Movies, School, and New Jersey!!

Alright. It's been a while since I've posted anything. I am still alive and kickin' though. I'm stuck in a bit of a rut right now, motivation-wise. This semester has been a bit harder than usual. I'm not really sure why. I blame the two-month long winter break. It broke down all my momentum and I'm havig a difficult time building it back up.

D-Box and Battle: LA
Jordan and I saw Battle: LA last night in D-Box seats. Those are fancy-shmancy seats that move along with the movie. Think of it as a far classier and better-made version of Star Tours at Disneyland. I'm not sure that Battle: LA was the best movie to kick off my D-Box movie experience. Since it was a war movie, it was mostly shaking and jolting with helicopter rides and explosions. The seats swerve and tilt and lean and all that good stuff (I was at the media unveiling of these seats at the UltraStar movie theater where they really showed off their goods). I'm thinking that a movie like the new Fast & Furious would be a good choice for it because of all the driving scenes that I'm sure it will have. :) I did learn a valuable lesson though. If you're having the "D-Box experience", make sure you time your sips of soda. Perhaps during a sex scene, where you don't anticipate your seat to start jerking uncontrollably (...I didn't mean to word it that way, but hey...If the shoe fits...lol). I almost spilled soda all over myself when my seat starting going crazy when one of the fight scenes started. All in all, it was your typical alien invasion movie. Aaron Eckhart was extremely rugged and gritty and handsome and Michelle Rodriguez played the same part she always plays in movies. Enjoyable, as long as you don't have a problem with watching Santa Monica and Los Angeles get destroyed. Although, I'm sure all the New Yorkers were pleased to see some other movie get attacked in a movie for a change.

FCCC & Hands Across California
I got a very interesting e-mail from the Marketing director for my school. She's referred me to the Foundation for California Community Colleges to be the student representative for Coastline in the Hands Across California campaign. Now, to be quite honest, I don't exactly know what that entails since I've yet to receive an e-mail from the contact over there with more information about it. But I feel really honored that she would consider me to be a good representative for my school. I'm excited to learn more about it and would love to participate. I'll keep you posted. :)

New Jersey Trip
We'll be purchasing our plane tickets for our trip to Jersey this evening. So exciting!! I've ordered the bridesmaid dress, so that's already done and paid for. I just have to wait for it to arrive by May 4th or earlier in "watermelon". It's a pretty cute pink. :) We'll be staying with my aunt and uncle, so we don't have to save for a hotel. (Thank you Aunt Ellen & Uncle Eddie!) So really, once the planes and car rental is taken care of, I just have to save up for play on the east coast. I am so excited to go back there, I can't even express it in words. This is the first time since the summer of 2002 that I will be going back to New Jersey for a visit that lasts longer than three days. I'll have 6 whole days out there! Ahh! :)

Lunch is rapidly approaching and I tragically did not pack anything today. Tempted to go out and get food, but I'd rather not spend the money right now. Guess I'll just skip it and wait till dinner.

Irony @ Its Finest

Ohhhhh wow. How perfect is this. Well, y'all don't really know me, so it may not be that funny. But if anyone who actually knows me happens to read this post, I guarantee it will elicit a chuckle or two. These are the recommended areas I need to study in my math course so far:

Ch 3: Numbers in the Real World
Ch 4: Managing Money

Figures.

Did They Really Just Say That: Two-fer Tuesday

People are on fire today.

Situation #1:Caller: So do you have anything in Europe?
Me: No, unfortunately we don't really see much in Europe.
Caller: Oh. So what about England?
Me: No, we don't really have much available in Europe.
Caller: What about Spain or France?
Me: ....No. We don't really get much in Europe.

Situation #2:Me: I have a week available August 5-12.
Caller: So...if it starts August 5th, that means it starts in August not at the end of July.
Me: .......The week starts August 5th. So it does not start in July.
Caller: Ohhhh. Okay, I see what you're saying.



::shakes head:: Humanity is so screwed...